• OPINION

  Referee agencies and old political tricks

  Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 31/03/2023

  » Almost three decades ago, Thai politics reached a critical threshold when public demands resulted in the establishment of a clutch of independent agencies to ensure the transparency and accountability of the political system and the stability and effectiveness of government.

• OPINION

  Thai politics' murky tunnel to nowhere

  Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 07/01/2022

  » Starting out a new year should engender a sense of hope and optimism that tomorrow can be better than yesterday. But the reality in Thailand suggests otherwise. A sense of prolonged malaise and discontent pervades the scene, where politics will likely prove murky with an economy persistently in the doldrums, underpinned by continuing societal divisions and broad-based unhappiness. Unless drastic changes and reforms take place very soon, this year is likely to further solidify the onset of a decade of decay and stagnation.

• OPINION

  The karmic results of voter suppression

  Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 30/10/2020

  » When Thailand's justice system issues decisions that have political ramifications, fewer people are holding their breath these days because conclusions are increasingly foregone. In fact, when the historical record comes into fuller view, it will be seen that the politicisation of the judiciary has fundamentally undermined Thailand's fragile democratic development and reinforced authoritarian rule that has been resurgent over the past 15 years. Nowhere are these judicial sins and shortcoming more salient and damning than the systematic and selective disenfranchisement of voters.

• OPINION

  The cabinet's composition and direction

  News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 19/07/2019

  » With Thailand's new post-election cabinet members poised to to start work after being sworn in, it is instructive to look at how they have been assembled based on patron-client ties and vested interests. Because it contains unsavoury individuals with shady pasts, this cabinet is unlikely to last long but the political longevity of its leader, former junta chairman and still Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, may endure longer than many would expect from such a fragile, fractious coalition government.

• OPINION

  Give parliamentary politics a chance

  News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 26/07/2019

  » After a five-year hiatus, parliamentary politics returns this week with a constitutionally mandated policy statement by the coalition government of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. With government and opposition back at work again, in contrast to the previous military-appointed rubber-stamp legislature under junta rule, Thailand has yet another small window of opportunity to regain and rebuild popular rule.

• OPINION

  Woeful Senate will worsen political woes

  News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 10/05/2019

  » Since it first took office in 1947, Thailand's Senate has mostly comprised appointees as mandated by more than a dozen constitutions over the past seven decades. Only in the 1997 and 2007 charters was the Senate elected and half elected, respectively. The 2017 constitution has reverted to a wholly appointed upper chamber but this time the 250-member Senate has been given wider authority, particularly the selection of the prime minister.

• OPINION

  Poll results point to clear way forward

  News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 26/04/2019

  » Despite the controversy and confusion over Thailand's March 24 election outcome, its immediate and far-reaching implications are indisputable.

• OPINION

  Army-backed regime pulls poll disguises

  News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 15/03/2019

  » At issue in the looming election is less about Thailand's return to democratic rule and more about the country's slide into long-term military-authoritarianism with democratic disguises. The most recent military seizure of power on May 22, 2014, appears increasingly like a coup to remake all coups. However the votes are decided, the army-backed junta under the National Council for Peace and Order, spearheaded by Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, intends to stay for the long haul.

• OPINION

  The anatomy of a very tricky election

  News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 29/03/2019

  » Thailand's first election in nearly eight years was supposed to bring some closure to a self-appointed military government and clarity to the country's democratic future. Instead, it has generated much controversy and probable continuity for the incumbent military regime with murky political directions ahead. Central to the questions and outcomes surrounding the poll on Sunday is the Election Commission (EC). Its actions and interpretations of events will have much to say about what happens next.

• OPINION

  TRC dissolution turns up political heat

  News, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 08/03/2019

  » It is deja vu all over again in Thai politics. Another political party aligned to Thaksin Shinawatra, an ousted, self-exiled and convicted former prime minister, found its way to the Constitutional Court where it was dissolved in short order for "opposing the democratic system with the King as head of state".

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